Category Archives: For Writers

As both a scientist and a toolmaker for creative media people, I spend a lot of time thinking about how fiction works, how we writers do what we do, and how I might be able to help myself (and others) get better at it. This is the section of my web site where I post articles about the business, craft, and tools of writing. I don’t promise that what I have to say will work for everybody else—or even anybody else—but it should always be interesting.

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IOD-TV Episode #4: Echoing Headwords

Echoing headwords: what they are and what can you do about them.

Still image from IOD-TV Episode #3

IOD-TV Episode #3: Suffocated Empathy

In this episode of The 5-Minute Immersion Lab, I’ll walk through the problem I call “suffocated empathy,” explain how it works, and then give an example of how to nip it in the bud.

Announcing Page Fight!: a fast-paced game where books compete for reader love and authors win

Today I am happy to announce the beta release of an awesome game that lets readers help authors be more awesome, while having fun and keeping score.

The paradox of walking while you write: be creative or solve problems? Choose one.

There has been a lot of attention in the media over the last year or two about a particular research study that seems to show that our creativity goes up when we are walking. But that result completely contradicts my own own experience, so I thought I’d dig into the science. It turns out that we have to be careful with our definitions.

TREWGrip: The keyboard that has changed my writing life

Those who follow my ImmerseOrDie reviews will know that I spend a good deal of time each day on a treadmill, reading ebooks and writing reports about why they did…